So how do you stay ahead of the game, just like some of your competitors?

It’s simple. Align your website’s goal with that of Google’s objective which is to provide the most relevant results fastest and compatible with the device requested on by its users.

Begin here. Evaluate and adopt as many of them as you can.

1.Enrich your SEO and content strategies based on rock solid data.

Though well-researched SEO strategies and tastefully crafted content of a website go hand in hand to make a website rank higher in online searches, the journey to the top spot turns compelling only when your SEO and content strategies are based on well-researched data.

2. Synergise SEO, content and social.

Content is king of your website. Synergize your SEO strategies with the content which is unique to your business and use it across all social media platforms.

Be it words, videos, images or graphics, content which answers popular questions or covers trends of the day gets visitors streaming to your website. The SEO optimised quality content boosts your search visibility. It also makes a great shareable content for social platforms.

3. Have mobile friendly websites. It’s mandatory.

Mobile friendly sites are websites which display correctly on handheld devices, loads within seconds and provides a seamless navigation experience to your site visitors.

Gone are the days when you as a business owner had a choice of whether you want a mobile friendly site or not. Google is ranking your business based on mobile first indexing.

So for any company aspiring to be successful in online, it’s mandatory to have a mobile friendly website.

It is high time brands big and small know that it is a mobile first market. With more and more consumers using the internet on their phones to search and connect with their brands, your website needs should be optimised for mobiles and other hand held devices.

Also, mobile optimised websites should download fast…really fast.

Besides being mobile friendly, seamless in navigation and having optimised content, the mobile website should load in 3 seconds or less. Image optimisation, redirects and the necessary barrier to Follow technical mobile SEO best practices should have been followed.

Create unique content which appeals mobile users.

Most mobile users are researching a topic or looking for inspirational content. Create the content keeping this in mind. Focus also on the layout of the content, making it snackable and easy to digest. Be concise and to the point.

4.Be Hyperlocal, hyper relevant and hyper valuable.

Target potential buyers by capitalising on the “ near me” searches. This is an excellent way to tap potential customers looking for services similar to yours.

Contact information is critical here. Make sure the essential contact information including address, phone number, operation hours, directions and reviews are readily available. Relevant for small, medium and large businesses alike, this feature has tremendous potential as people searching for business have a high intent of visiting the store within 24 hours of their search.

5.Transit from text to voice searches.

Findings suggest that by 2020 around 50% of all searches online will be voice based.
Consumers are fast adopting virtual assistants like Siri and Alexa and depending on voice searches over text function on their devices. While it adds convenience to users, it is changing the way Google’s bots are scanning content on your website.

The key here is to get the content foundation right. If your content is the best answer the popular questions around who, what, when, where, how and why and is aligned with the interest and intent of the searcher, your website is likely to rank high.

6. Adopt machine learning.

Google uses machine learning technology RankBrain
to deliver its search results. By incorporating machine learning artificial intelligence system, we too can explore the user’s intent and can save some time to focus on creating content that sells.

7. Hire ethical SEO.

In a hurry to adapt your business quickly to meet the new shifts we mentioned above, while simultaneously trying to compete in the online rank is tedious and fatal both for you and your business.